UN says Israel’s planned Gaza City military offensive ‘must be immediately halted’

LONDON — On the heels of Israel’s security cabinet approving plans to occupy Gaza City, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, said “this further escalation will result in more killing, more unbearable suffering, senseless destruction,” according to a statement released Friday morning.

Turk called for the offensive to be “immediately halted.”

“The Israeli Government’s plan for a complete military takeover of the occupied Gaza strip must be immediately halted,” Turk said. “It runs contrary to the ruling of the International Court of Justice that Israel must bring its occupation to an end as soon as possible, to the realisation of the agreed two-State solution and to the right of Palestinians to self-determination.”

European Union Council President Antonio Costa strongly urged the Israeli government to reconsider its decision to take over Gaza City, saying it will only worsen the situation in Gaza.

“Such an operation — together with the continued illegal expansion of settlements in the West Bank, the massive destruction in Gaza, the blockade of humanitarian aid, and the spread of famine — not only violates the agreement with the EU announced by the High Representative on July 19 but also undermines fundamental principles of international law and universal values,” Costa said in a post on social media.

“Such a decision must have consequences for EU-Israel relations,” he said.

“The situation in Gaza remains dramatic, and the decision by the Israeli government will only further worsen it. The two-state solution remains the only sustainable, long-term solution for peace and security in Israel and the region,” Costa said.

Germany, one of Israel’s closest allies, announced Friday it will suspend the exports of arms to Israel that could be used in the Gaza Strip “until further notice.” Germany said the “release of hostages and purposeful negotiations on a ceasefire are our top priority.”

“The even harsher military action by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip, approved last night by the Israeli Security Cabinet, makes it increasingly difficult, from the German government’s perspective, to see how these goals are to be achieved,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in a statement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back on the decision.

“Germany is rewarding Hamas terrorism by embargoing arms to Israel,” Netanyahu said in a statement released after he spoke with Merz.

Germany is the second-biggest exporter of military equipment to Israel, after the U.S., according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

In response to Israel’s plans to take over Gaza City, Hamas claimed this was the reason Israel withdrew from the last round of negotiations, and that they had been “on the verge of reaching an agreement for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange.”

Hamas called Israel’s latest plan a new war crime, saying the Israeli government “do not care about the fate of their captives,” and that they are sacrificing them.

Hamas reaffirmed “maximum flexibility and positivity” toward a ceasefire, but warned Israel the current plan “will come at a high cost and will not be a walk in the park.”

Family members of hostages and other protesters gathered in front of the building where the Israeli cabinet was in session to protest Netanyahu’s current proposal to occupy all of Gaza, calling the move a “death sentence” for the remaining hostages in a statement from the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters.

“For a year and ten months we’ve been trying to believe that everything is being done to bring them back – you have failed. Now it’s necessary to do the one thing the government hasn’t yet done – put a comprehensive deal on the table that will bring them all home together,” said Anat Angrest, mother of hostage Matan Angrest.

Israel’s plan for an expansion of military operations comes amid international condemnation of the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.

“The Security Cabinet has approved the Prime Minister’s proposal for the defeat of Hamas,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said in a statement released on Thursday. “The IDF [Israel Defense Forces] will prepare for the takeover of Gaza City while ensuring the provision of humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones.”

Turk, however, said that the potential escalation will only lead to more problems in the region. leading to, what he says, “senseless destruction and atrocity crimes.”

“The war in Gaza must end now. And Israelis and Palestinians must be allowed to live side by side in peace,” said Turk. “Instead of intensifying this war, the Israeli Government should put all its efforts into saving the lives of Gaza’s civilians by allowing the full, unfettered flow of humanitarian aid. The hostages must be immediately and unconditionally released by Palestinian armed groups. Palestinians arbitrarily detained by Israel must also be immediately and unconditionally released.”

In a Fox News interview earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said repeatedly that he does not want to “govern Gaza,” but he wants to “hand it over to Arab forces that will govern it properly without threatening” Israel.

Hamas, responding to the Fox News interview, said in a statement that “Netanyahu’s statements represent a blatant reversal of the negotiation process and clearly expose the real motives behind his withdrawal from the latest round of talks, despite us nearing a final agreement.”

On Sunday, an Israeli official told ABC News that Netanyahu was pushing to expand the military operation in Gaza on the grounds that he felt Hamas is not interested in reaching a new ceasefire deal under which surviving hostages could be released.

When asked about the possible expansion of the campaign in Gaza, U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said Tuesday, “Reporting is one thing. Real plans might be another. We are not in the business of interpreting statements from foreign governments when and if they’re made.”

“We do remain focused on freeing the hostages, including the remains of two Americans, and ensuring that Hamas never rules Gaza again,” Bruce said.